


Chains

by FallenFeathers



Series: Discovering Destiny [7]
Category: Merlin (TV)
Genre: Evil Morgana (Merlin), Kilgharrah's the worst, Merlin tries to help, prisoner
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-05-15
Updated: 2020-05-15
Packaged: 2021-03-03 03:15:53
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,533
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24198088
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/FallenFeathers/pseuds/FallenFeathers
Summary: Merlin tries to help Morgana when she's held prisoner in Amata.
Series: Discovering Destiny [7]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1577164
Comments: 3
Kudos: 55





	Chains

“Emrys,” Morgana hissed.

Merlin had heard the rumors that King Aenid had captured a dragon and a powerful sorceress, but they had only been rumors. Then he heard Aithusa’s cry for help. It had taken him almost a week to get Arthur to allow him time off. Merlin had told Guinevere that his mother was ill, and Gwen, the kind hearted friend that she was, had bullied Arthur into granting Merlin’s request. Killgharrah had made the trip to Amata in record time. Now, Merlin looked down into a deep pit at Morgana, chained to the wall, and Aithusa, who refused to leave her.

“Have you come to kill me?” Even trapped, the High Priestess of the Old Religion was as defiant as ever.

“I have no wish to kill you, Morgana.” Merlin was under no illusions that she would believe him, but he owed it to her to be honest. Well, as honest as he could be without revealing his identity, he supposed as he stroked the long beard that came with his aged disguise.

“Why have you come, then? Surely not to release me.” There was no missing the bitterness and venom that tainted her voice.

“I came,” he answered slowly, “because Aithusa called for help.” He glanced at the dragon curled at the bottom of the pit. She was growing quickly, and it wouldn’t be long before her growth was hindered by the stone walls, crippling her. Morgana was stroking Aithusa’s head gently as the dragon cooed. “She can’t stay here, Morgana.”

Morgana laughed, but it was cold and devoid of humor. “Tell me, Emrys, do you know how they captured me? How such small men were able to chain a High Priestess of the Old Religion in this pit? No? Well, let me enlighten you.” She kept her head down as she continued stroking the dragon, so Merlin could not see her face, but her words were thick with anger. “They caught Aithusa first. She was too small to defend herself, and too young to know the danger men posed. They used her to set a trap for me. I woke here in chains that bind my magic. I expected they would kill Aithusa, but it seemed to amuse them that she would not leave my side to save herself.” Morgana lifted her head to lock eyes with him. There he saw all the pain and hate that boiled just below the surface. “So make no mistake, Emrys. I am not the cause of Aithusa’s suffering.”

“I did not think you were,” Merlin clarified. “I merely hoped you might be able to convince her to save herself, but I see that she will not leave this place without you.” He hung his head with a deep sigh. “Things would be much easier if I could just free you, Morgana.”

“I don’t see why the great and powerful Emrys couldn’t do just that.” Morgana’s particular brand of sarcasm was familiar to Merlin; it reminded him of those early days in Camelot when they had still been friends.

“Would you forfeit your claim to Camelot’s throne?” he asked with a smirk. “Stop your violent campaign against those without magic?” When Morgana didn’t respond, he shook his head sadly. “No, Morgana. For the future of Albion, I cannot free you. Not until you free yourself.”

Merlin waited, but Morgana stayed silent, all her attention focused on the dragon resting on her lap. He wouldn’t get anywhere more with the witch tonight. Holding out his hand, the warlock muttered a spell that would hopefully make imprisonment a little easier for the pair in the pit without alerting their captors that anything had changed. Merlin let himself look one last time into the pit before walking away, his magic letting him walk unnoticed through Aenid’s men.

\---

“Killing the witch would be the most straightforward way of rescuing the young dragon.”

Merlin eyed Kilgharrah coolly. The Great Dragon had not been pleased when Merlin returned from his first visit to Amata without Aithusa. He was even less pleased when Merlin had asked him why he hadn’t kept a closer eye on the younger dragon. The only thing keeping Kilgharrah from rampaging through Amata, like he had once done in Camelot, was Merlin’s power as a Dragonlord.

“We’ve already been over this,” Merlin growled. “I will not kill Morgana. It is my fault she succumbed to her fear. I will not condemn her for it.” He quickly cast the enchantment to age himself, taking a moment to acclimate himself to the aches and pains that came with it. His voice crackled with age as he continued. “Aithusa has made her choice to stay with Morgana. I don’t understand it any better than you, but I will respect her decision.” Merlin didn’t wait for a response from the dragon before striding off into the night.

\---

“You’re back.” Morgana’s bored tone contrasted with the curious look she gave him as he sat at the edge of the pit.

“I may not be able to free you, Morgana, but no one should be left alone to such cruelty.”

“You’re no better than the rest of them,” Morgana scoffed.

“Perhaps not.” Merlin stroked his beard as he gathered his thoughts. “But what would you do if I released you now? Thank me? I doubt it. No, it seems much more likely that you would try to kill me.”

“It would be only fair for all the times you’ve stood in my way,” Morgana said defiantly.

“True,” Merlin conceded. “You do have more reason to hate me than most.” More than she knew, but he kept that to himself. If she knew who he really was… What he had done to her… “I blame myself for what has happened to you.”

“I will not be pitied,” Morgana spat.

“It’s not pity, Morgana,” Merlin sighed. “It’s regret. I could have helped you, been a friend to you when you needed one most. Instead, I left you alone and all but threw you into Morgause’s waiting arms.” He shook his head. “I only wish to help you.”

“I don’t need your help.” Morgana’s chains rattled as she stood, eyes locked on Merlin. “I will free myself from this prison on my own. You come here to ease your own guilty conscience. Whatever absolution you’re looking for, I won’t give you. Leave, Emrys. And know that the next time we see each other, I will kill you.”

Merlin could only shake his head sadly as he turned away. The sound of a dragon's sad cry followed him all the way back to Camelot.

\---

Merlin made more visits to Amata, though they were few and far between. It was getting harder to convince Arthur to give him the time off, but whenever he enlisted Gwen’s help, Arthur would always cave. Merlin was careful to keep his trips short, and he hoped they didn’t draw too much unwanted attention. Gaius might have had an idea where he disappeared to, but his mentor never asked.

Each visit was different. Sometimes, it would simply be him talking to Aithusa in Dragon Language. Other times, Morgana would attempt to goad him into releasing her. But mostly, Merlin tried to convince Morgana that her crusade was doing more harm than good. He doubted she paid him much heed, though. Merlin hoped, maybe naively, that she at least enjoyed the company.

“Why do you protect Camelot?”

Merlin was startled by the abrupt question. They had been sitting in silence with Aithusa’s gentle snores filling the air around them, neither wanting to wake the sleeping dragon. But, clearly, Morgana had something on her mind.

“Camelot is my home,” Merlin answered, knowing his answer would be less than satisfactory for the witch.

“You would call a place that would see you burn ‘home’?” she scoffed. “Your very existence in Camelot is illegal. The King himself would come after you, if he knew there was one last Dragonlord and dragon.”

“Arthur is not his father, Morgana.” Merlin fought to keep his voice even. “If you were not so blinded by fear, you might see that Arthur is a far better king than his father ever was.”

“Arthur hates magic, just as much as Uther,” Morgana insisted. “Nothing will ever change that.”

“You may be right,” he admitted, “but people can change, if you give them the opportunity. Arthur is no different.”

Morgana eyed him curiously. “What gives you such faith in my brother?”

“I’ve been watching him. He has come a long way from who he once was. Arthur is a good man, and he has the potential to be a great king.” Merlin paused to stroke his beard. “He is the Once and Future King, destined to unite all of Albion.”

“The Once and Future King?” Morgana laughed. “I didn’t take you for a man to believe in the fanciful dreams of druids.”

“Sometimes,” Merlin spoke softly, “dreams are all we have.”

“You are an old fool, Emrys.”

\---

Later, when he heard the rumors that Morgana had escaped Aenid’s prison, along with a white dragon, Merlin couldn’t help but wonder what had taken her so long. Some chains, he thought, were not broken easily.

**Author's Note:**

> It's been a while (working from home is weird) but here's another piece. Already working on another, hopefully it'll be up soon. I thought about writing this from Morgana's POV, but I couldn't get her voice right. I might write that version later.  
> Again, thank you to my amazing beta reader evelynsteele! She's absolutely the best for putting up with my horrible grammar, even if she still hasn't finished watching the show yet.  
> Hope you all enjoy! Your feedback is what keeps me writing. Stay safe out there!


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